A Unique Experience
When fifteen minutes with your doctor isn't enough...
If your experience of health care is like most, the doctor’s office can be a place of tight schedules and tighter rules, influenced as much by the requirements of insurers as by the needs of patients.
My office is a center for health and well being where you can be informed and involved in your own health care decisions. Here you will find:
- A doctor who cares and is committed to knowing you and your health status.
- A physician who is a listener, an advisor, a diagnostician and an advocate for your health.
- A doctor who see you as a whole person, and who understands that your health is based on genetic traits and dispositions, as well as the physical and emotional environment in which you live and work.
- An integrative approach to health, working with an MD grounded in medical science who understands alternative methods and is trained in medical acupuncture.
- A response to all your questions.
Examples
A 36 year old female comes in for a routine physical and mentions that she’s given up running because her knees hurt. Does she love running? Does she want to give up running? Can we change this?
- Evaluation showed that this patient’s chronic knee pain was “patellofemoral syndrome” which responded to working with her local sports medicine’s physical therapist in strengthening her quads and her podiatrist who customized orthotics. She then worked with Hazel Wood, Chi running instructor, to strengthen her core and use techniques which prevented strain on her knees. She is now running 20 miles per week without knee pain…and loving it!
A 38 year old male had his cholesterol checked by his primary care doctor because his father died of a heart attack at age 40. He was put on lipitor and now has severe muscle aches and pains and doesn’t know what to do. What is his risk for heart disease? Does he need lipitor?
- This patient had “a cholesterol screening” test done. By doing in-depth screening of his heart disease risk with the Berkeley Heart Lab, it was discovered that he did not have the “bad cholesterol or LDL” and that by watching his diet and exercising he could go off the lipitor, resolve his muscle aches and be healthy.
A 45 year old female can’t understand why she’s not losing weight. She calculates that she’s taking in 1,200 kcal per day, does a local boot camp an hour a day and still is 20 pounds over her pre-pregancy weight. Is this just “aging” or is she just “unlucky to have this body?” Is there an underlying problem that can be corrected?
- Failure to lose weight with exercise and a reasonable diet is suspicious for insulin resistance. By looking at this patient’s insulin, triglyceride and glucose levels, this patient consulted with Kathy Napoli, R.D., about her nutritional status and has since been able to attain her desired weight.
A 28 year old male triathlete has progressed to training for an Olympic distance triathlon to a half and finds that his endurance is decreasing, his morning heart rate is high and he is nauseated on the running leg of his training. Is he just not able to increase his training? Is there something “really wrong?” Could it be his nutrition?
- Many athletes struggle with understanding their training goals and perceptions of what is “healthy.” This patient’s desire to increase his training caused fatigue and nausea which he didn’t understand. By reviewing an in-depth food and exercise journal and working with Sunny Blende, specialist in athletic nutrition, he was able to successfully train for prolonged distances.
Collaboration
The examples illustrate the power of integrative medicine. By using all of the diagnostic and therapeutic tools available to me, and collaborating with others who bring special knowledge to the table, I was able to work with these patients to bring about satisfactory outcomes.
A letter from Lisa
...
"I had some health problems over the past few months that required frequent visits to my doctor's office. As I sat on the examining table, I looked out the window at a beautiful view of the hills and the highway as it disappears into the tunnel headed to San Francisco. I really wanted to paint this picture and give it to my doctor, who is really an angel named Elizabeth.
"Little did I know that I was at a major fork in my own road, as I painted this one. Rather than obsessing over painting the perfect picture, I simply framed it, with its many imperfections, and gave it to her, as an expression of my gratitude for her gentle care of my health. I am still not sure which way the road is taking me, but I know it is in the right direction!
"No painting can express my gratitude for a Doctor that has taken so much interest in helping me re-gain my health.
"Thank you, Dr. Elizabeth Maier, in Orinda, California. You are one of a kind."
~ Lisa
